Bye Week Nonsense - Scoring and the Thursday Night Games

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I was having a conservation with this guy that mentioned how he didn't enjoy the NFL as much as he did in the past because of the new rules on defense, and how it seems like just about everybody can score 30 every week. The more I thought about it the more sense he made. I know I grew up in an era when running the ball and playing defense was how you won Superbowls. It was rare for teams to even be able to score more than 35 on another NFL defense. Now thats pretty standard. I've noticed I've been watching a lot less football in general, especially college. I was disgusting with the Alabama, A&M game. 49 to 42 isn't "exciting" to me. Its basically Arena ball, and there is a reason people don't watch the AFL. Everybody in college uses 5 or 6 receiver sets and its impossible for defenders to defend considering they have basically been handcuffed in the last 5 or so years. Hopefully, when it gets cold teams go back to fundamental football. Running the ball and playing defense. Having 10 QBs throwing for 400 yards every week takes luster out of throwing for 400 yards at all.

On another note, Roger Goodell and his Thursday night game need to go. Much like the scoring problem, when you have a game on Thursday Night, and its Jacksonville and the Titans, it isn't "must see". It takes away from the shields image. There are NBA games on TNT in November that are more intriguing than some of these games. Also, towards the middle and end of the season when there are Holiday games, and the dreaded Saturday games, the bread and butter of the NFL, the Sunday afternoon games suffer. They spread the schedule way to thin in my opinion.

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so until we stop gobbling up the ESPN highlights and NFL Network dedicated to 24 hours of football, the combine, the draft, Free Agency period- let alone the season with Sunday Ticket and the Redzone channel.. they will continue to feed the monsterous appetite our country has for NFL football

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While the rule changes have positively affected the offense, I do think that it is somewhat overblown by how much it has improved the passing game. Schemes in the NFL have drastically changed in the past 15 years which has helped offenses. Add to this that 15-20 years ago, at the youth level, QBs were taught to run the option and veer, but over time, young QBs are actually being taught how to throw, by the time they get to high school they are in full fledged passing offenses, and once they get to the NFL, passing and reading defense is just a natural thing for these players. This is the biggest reason to me why the explosion in passing has happened.

As for Thursdays, I agree, I want it to go back to the way it was, Thursdays are for college football, and more particularly, the smaller conferences like the MAC, SBC and CUSA. I used to love watching the Thursday night games between smaller conference, now I have to watch the semi-pro teams play.